Competition has attracted over 150,000 schoolchildren since launch in 2004

The Road Safety Authority celebrated 10 years of ‘Buckle Up’ and ‘Be Safe, Be Seen’ at the Annual ‘Seatbelt Sheriff’ and ‘Hi Glo Silver’ Awards in Dublin Castle today. These special awards were given to over 200 schoolchildren from 10 primary schools around Ireland in recognition of the outstanding contribution they have made to keeping Ireland’s roads safe.

Schoolchildren from Cavan, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Louth, Tipperary and Waterford were among the award winners in Dublin Castle today. First class students from Scoil Mhuire na nGael, Dundalk Co. Louth took first prize in the ‘Seatbelt Sheriff’ competition for their poster, ‘Travel far in your car but mind your health were a belt’. The students from 2nd Class in Virgin Mary GNS, Ballymun, Dublin took first prize in the ‘Hi-Glo Silver’ competition for their poster, ‘Ready, Stead, Glow’.

The awards ceremony was attended by the RSA’s new Chief Executive Moyagh Murdock who commended the children for their creativity and commitment to road safety.

“Today’s ceremony demonstrates the outstanding commitment of young people across Ireland to making our roads safer. Since 2004, over 55,000 classes around the country have taken part in ‘Seatbelt Sheriff’ and ‘Hi Glo Silver’ and it is the hard work and commitment of these children, their parents and their teachers that has helped to make Irish roads among the safest in Europe. I want to congratulate you all on your excellent and imaginative art projects and I want to thank each and every one of you for the thought and effort you put into your posters. You are a credit to your families and to your schools,” said Ms Murdock.

The competition is now in its tenth year and encourages children to learn vital road safety skills such as putting on their seatbelt and wearing high visibility clothing.

Speaking about the importance of developing road safety skills at a young age, Ms Murdock said: “Children are among our most vulnerable road-users so we have a responsibility as parents and educators to make sure they develop good road safety skills at an early age. Programmes like ‘Seatbelt Sheriff’ and ‘Hi Glo Silver’ work because they are engaging and fun, and they make it easy for children to learn about road safety. It is my hope that the lessons learned will stay with these children and that, throughout their teens and into adulthood, they will continue to be real life Seatbelt Sheriffs, keeping themselves, their peers and their loved ones safe on our roads for years to come. I would also like to commend teachers throughout the country for the great work they do to educate our youngest road-users about road safety.”

Chief Superintendent Michael O'Sullivan, An Garda Síochána said: “On behalf of An Garda Síochána, it is great to be here today to celebrate the fantastic efforts being made by schools across Ireland to encourage children to be safe and smart road users. An Garda Síochána is committed to supporting any initiative that helps our youngest and most vulnerable road-users to learn vital road safety skills. I want to extend my congratulations to all of the students here today on their fantastic work, and urge parents and teachers around the country to build on the work being done in schools and at home by demonstrating safe and responsible road use at all times.”

‘Seatbelt Sheriff’ and ‘Hi-Glo Silver’ are fun, educational road safety programmes for children in first and second class in primary school. Children in first class become ‘Seatbelt Sheriffs’ by taking a pledge to wear their seatbelts and making sure that everyone else in the car is buckled up too. Once they become ‘Seatbelt Sheriffs’, they can flash their sheriff’s badge so that everyone they’re travelling with knows that they must wear their seatbelts.

After becoming honorary ‘Seatbelt Sheriffs’ in first class, ‘Hi-Glo Silver’ encourages second-class students to wear bright high visibility clothing when they are out walking or cycling. They will pledge to wear high visibility jackets, armbands or belts and remind their parents, family and friends to do the same. Just like becoming a ‘Seatbelt Sheriff’, pupils will receive a certificate that gives them the power to instruct everyone when they walk or cycle to wear safety gear.

Further information on the Road Safety Authority’s Seatbelt Sheriff and Hi-Glo Silver campaigns is available at www.seatbeltsheriff.ie